We often find empty spaces and broken places in this journey called life. Sometimes someone, or a group of people, fills in those gaps for us. Our lives head in a new direction, and the ripples of our choices reach far and wide in blessing. Take, for example, Elizabeth’s story.*

Dreadful Discovery
Elizabeth trembled as […]

One evening while working late, I went to the kitchen for a glass of water and saw a cockroach dart across the counter. I froze. It wasn’t just the bug itself that unsettled me, but what it meant: dirt, contamination, a threat to everything clean in that space. I simply reached for something to eliminate […]

I am a gardener, and when it’s fall, preserving the harvest is so rewarding. My garage is lined with crates of squash and pumpkins brought in from the field. The pantry is stocked with jars of home-canned salsa and spaghetti sauce. Medicinal herbs are drying in the closet in preparation for making herbal salves. But […]

Stretching back to remote antiquity, seals have been used to validate documents and letters in much the same way we use signatures today. The concept of the seal developed from the ancient cultures of Egypt and Babylon. A seal specified the name of the person to whom it belonged, his official position of authority and […]

On October 7, 2023, the world was shocked by the news that Hamas had orchestrated a surprise attack on the nation of Israel. In one day, over a thousand were killed, and another 250 were abducted and taken to Gaza. What these hostages have endured can only be described as horrific. During her 477 days […]

Minimalist Krissy Branson used to live an escapist life: “I was never truly present.... I was looking for ways to zone out, ways to distract myself—as opposed to waking up and living the life in front of me.” Some of the ways she zoned out were scrolling for hours on her phone, binge-watching TV series, […]

Addiction is very cruel. Whatever form it takes—from substances to behaviors—it’s a hard taskmaster. “Addiction feels like you’re drowning, and the substance is the only thing keeping you afloat. But in reality, it’s dragging you deeper into the abyss.” “It’s a love-hate relationship with the very thing that’s ruining your life. You hate it for […]

While studying at Sydney University in Australia, both of us were avid sportsmen. Our heavy involvement in table tennis produced great emotional tension. We swung from heightened elation when we won to bitter disappointment when we lost. Competition appealed to our pride, anger, selfish ambition, bitterness, and rivalry. It did not bring us closer to […]

We tend to think of religion from the standpoint of how it affects us. Our Lord appreciates it when we think of it from the standpoint of how it affects Him. Have you ever thought of how important you are to God? He has a place in His infinite heart that only you can fill. […]

British writer Bernard Hare recalls how an act of supreme kindness changed his life one sad night. In 1982, as a student living north of London, he was struggling in more than one way. The police called for him at his student apartment, but he wouldn’t answer the door, fearing that they had come to […]